Jillian
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Post by Jillian on Dec 2, 2019 11:52:16 GMT
I've been wondering if there have been contractual issues that have been holding up this album and even preventing Hayley from sharing details.
Because, with all the social media platforms, if an artist wants to share music, information etc. it can be done immediately. But Hayley hasn't been openly expressing any kind of discontent with the arrangement - (unlike for example Taylor Swift who has been very vocal about contractual issues) - so I must presume it's been her choice to be so silent for so long.
I'm just really quite intrigued by what kind of album she will eventually produce and how the marketing and launch process is going to work. She's been out of the public eye for so long that it's going to be a ground up reintroduction. The music scene is very different now. The old Classical Crossover Genre has run its course and to be honest, I don't see Hayley going back down that route.
I had a look through Hayley's schedule and it's been such a long time since she last really toured.
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Post by comet on Dec 2, 2019 16:08:28 GMT
Yes, a lot of artists fall out with their record companies (Prince and the slave symbol) and many others and they are usually very vocal about it at every opportunity they can get.
Interestingly many of them then hold back on making public any new material until they get a problem resolved or a new record deal or a new record company. Any of that sound familiar ?
or they make dreadful albums to fulfil the original contract.
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Jillian
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Post by Jillian on Dec 3, 2019 0:43:55 GMT
Yes, a lot of artists fall out with their record companies (Prince and the slave symbol) and many others and they are usually very vocal about it at every opportunity they can get. Interestingly many of them then hold back on making public any new material until they get a problem resolved or a new record deal or a new record company. Any of that sound familiar ? or they make dreadful albums to fulfil the original contract. I've turned over some scenarios in my mind that maybe the record deal was for a length of time and Hayley has been waiting it out. Or maybe she was contracted for a number of albums and the record company decided to not make them on any schedule. This has all happened to other artists. But such a thing occurring and Hayley being angry or upset about it seem very inconsistent with her activities over the past few years. So I'm pretty certain that Hayley has by choice stepped away from the music scene for whatever reason. I do think that the old classical crossover image seems a million miles away from the persona that Hayley is showing these days. So maybe that is a factor. Going back to the old music would seem like a very ill fit now. But this album making process has been so drawn out and stop start that I do wonder what is going on behind the scenes.
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Post by Libby on Dec 3, 2019 5:06:49 GMT
Her stepping away from the music scene was most likely due to certain personal issues which we are all now aware of to some extent. Why it had to take several years, who knows? And, of course we know her albums aren't going to qualify for the classical charts anymore. But, as far as whether you could consider her music Classical Crossover, we don't know for sure, but... I wouldn't be too sure about the assessment that her music is no longer classical crossover by most people's standards. Take another look at Chris' most recent post. Check the hashtags. There's one in there that seems to hint at crossover. You don't need to make a classical chart to still fit in the genre. Josh Groban has gradually moved away from the classical aspect, but he certainly hasn't lost fans or success because of it! There's something about being a really good songwriter/artist... wait, don't we know one of those? http://www.instagram.com/p/B5i-zRAJAIb
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Jillian
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Post by Jillian on Dec 3, 2019 11:00:58 GMT
Josh Groban has gradually moved away from the classical aspect, but he certainly hasn't lost fans or success because of it! There's something about being a really good songwriter/artist... wait, don't we know one of those? Just as an aside, Josh Groban is remarkable in that (in my opinion) each album he makes is better than the previous one. I think Josh is pretty firmly in pop territory these days, but he always chooses songs that show his voice to full potential. And when he does that, it will always keep the fans happy. I can't even say that I have much of an idea about what Hayley will do. I think she's probably evolved a lot as a person since we last had any kind of significant interview or the like with her.
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Post by Libby on Dec 4, 2019 2:14:47 GMT
My point about Josh was that he used to fit in the genre, and even now that he doesn’t, he’s still very successful. I don’t see why the same thing couldn’t happen for Hayley. It’ll be harder since she’s been away longer than he ever has been, but it’s still possible for her if it’s not much longer. We don’t know what Hayley’s doing, but we did get hints back when they were in NZ.
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Post by crissyt on Dec 4, 2019 22:45:30 GMT
All good thoughts, folks, but the bottom line remains: no news continues to be no news.
I'm inclined to agree with some of Jillian's comments about Hayley changing direction, both personally and musically.
The post 2013 difficulties and the drifting that followed must have had an effect, and have, per force, created something of a new direction. Most of the photos we see these day seem to me to show a somewhat harder-edged person than the pre-2013 Hayley. More "leather jacket" and less "middle-of-the-road smart casuals". No doubt some of this is a result of Hayley moving from her 20s to her 30s, some as a result of being away from the epicentre of the music industry PR machine, but I think also that there is influence from Chris and the people they spend time with in LA. That said, it takes two to tango.
I've mentioned the 2013 to 2017 period in a previous post so I won't re-visit that now beyond saying that it's good to see it's over. What does continue to vex me, though, was the apparent lack of other Westenras in all of the photos and videos on the greater September event. I hope it's not indicative of a greater change of direction than might be immediately apparent.
Musically, I, too, am expecting a move away from the classical and classical crossover that was her repertoire up to 2013. Maybe "Hushaby" gives a clue here. I don't think she'll go "Pop" with an upper case "P" (as in popular music, not bang!), as did her contemorary Charlotte Church. More a non-genre-aligned, somewhat easy listening style. Note to self – stand by to be seriously wrong!
The record company comments are also interesting, and reflect suggestions I've made on here before about record company tie-ins and waiting for a time period to expire. George Micheal did something similar and the Taylor Swift situation cannot be ignored. However the in the latter case, I think Ms. Swift was rather over vocal on the issue. It never does to sabre rattle too much and in any case, I don't think Hayley would take that approach. It's just not her style.
So what is going on behind the scenes? Even the rather irrelevant Instagram posts from both of them have largely dried up. As I said at the beginning: no news continues to be no news.
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Joe
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Supporting Hayley since 2003!
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Post by Joe on Dec 22, 2019 6:36:38 GMT
Ugh. Another parody song has become the official Christmas number one. For 2019, LadBaby’s song “I Love Sausage Rolls” is a parody of the song “I Love Rock n’ Roll” by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. At least the song was a charity single. www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/50869437LadBaby also won last year’s Christmas top spot with “We Built This City (On Sausage Rolls). It is a parody of Starship’s “We Built This City”. Here is a list of past number ones... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_UK_Singles_Chart_Christmas_number_ones
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Post by Libby on Dec 22, 2019 22:58:12 GMT
Well, Weird Al already beat him to that song back in 1983: Nobody beats Weird Al on parodies. LOL And no, I don't want it to be next Christmas before Hayley's album is out. It's already almost a year since she started on it. No reason for it to take that long... or maybe there is, but seriously, if it's much longer, it'll be much too long. Or, does she want to make it so we can say to her, " 'Tis 7 long years, since last we HEARD you..."
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Dave
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Post by Dave on Dec 23, 2019 15:47:19 GMT
And no, I don't want it to be next Christmas before Hayley's album is out. It's already almost a year since she started on it. No reason for it to take that long... or maybe there is, but seriously, if it's much longer, it'll be much too long. Or, does she want to make it so we can say to her, " 'Tis 7 long years, since last we HEARD you..." Oh... very good!
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Martin
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Post by Martin on Dec 31, 2019 20:50:27 GMT
Happy New Year to all our members and being so patient waiting for the new album. Another year passes but, perhaps, the “phantom” album will become a reality in 2020? Martin ps Happy New Year to Hayley (and Chris) too.
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Post by Libby on Jan 1, 2020 5:11:03 GMT
Well, if Hayley says new music is on the horizon, I would imagine that means next year. As in, fairly soon. But with Hayley, you just never know! Horizon still sounds far off, yet, a "horizon" is usually visible, even if it is miles and miles away. Maybe, it's months and months away (hopefully fewer than 12)?!
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Post by afaninchicago on Jan 3, 2020 13:49:09 GMT
Looks like 2020 will be the year based on her most recent social media post!!!
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Dave
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Post by Dave on Jan 4, 2020 1:49:01 GMT
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Post by Libby on Jan 4, 2020 8:41:20 GMT
That about describes it! Except I don’t think I would say she’s loved making us wait... not really.
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